Tuesday, September 25, 2012

It's hard to believe September is near it's end which means the start of fall, the most anticipated season for most fashionistas :) This is pretty much the type of outfit I live in during this season. Because I'm a student, I like to wear whatever is most comfortable and what embodies this genre of style the most for me is a cardigan, stretchable pants, and some booties :) Ever since I got this grey cardigan from the American Apparel Factory Sale, I've been grabbing it for almost all of my outfits. It's soft, comfortable, and the color goes with literally everything. The top which actually is a dress that I tucked into my pants, I got this week at my local Salvation Army. Such a great find. I love the print and of course the color is perfect for the fall time. Hope everyone is doing well and I'm starting school this Thursday :( Let me know how you guys juggle school and blogging because I definitely will need some tips :)

Saturday, September 22, 2012

So I've decided to do this favorites post hopefully twice a month consisting of my 5 Faves in the following categories:

1. Fashion: anything I'm obsessed with or loving at the moment.

2. Beauty: items like makeup or skincare and everything in between that I'm loving.

3. Music: a song I'm into.

4. Random: This could be anything from tips to people, to food, to basically anything that I'm excited about and want to share with you guys!

5. Quote: I think quotes are so inspirational so that's why I want to end with a favorite quote to hopefully inspire, motivate and give those that read this something to ponder about. So without further ado, here are my first 5 Faves for the month of September.

1.Black Floral Dr. Marten Boots: I've seen these around last fall but didn't think too much of them, but for some reason when I saw these today at Journeys (shoe store) I fell in love and thought they would add the perfect touch of print to all my simple plain colored outfits.

2.Chloe Perfume: This is one of my favorite scents of all times and I just got the roller ball version of it not too long ago. It's girly but very sophisticated at the same time if that makes any sense.

3. Neon Indian: Polish Girl: This is probably the first song I listen to when I browse the web lately. I know it's kind of old but it's super catchy and my favorite part is the beginning 5 seconds (mental note: make ringtone out of this intro)

4.Jamba Juice September Happy Hour: Last week when my friend and I were at the beach, we stumbled upon an ad that said Jamba Juice had a promotion where any of their 16 oz smoothies were going for $1. That's right a buck! So we went to one and felt like idiots asking and confirming with the cashier if the ad was for real and it was and we got a 16 oz for $1.00 :D Hurry to your local Jamba Juice because I guess this is going to end Sept 28th 2012! Oh and happy hour times are from 5pm-7pm.

5.Anita Roddick Quote: I got this quote from my planner and thought it carried a very strong and fitting message that applies to the blogging community. :)

Thursday, September 20, 2012

It's near the end of September and I finally set foot on the beach, which is really sad. Nonetheless, I had a relaxing Tuesday at Huntington Beach, napping on my beach towel for the most part and then catching up with my BFF Nicole :) Next week tomorrow will be the start of fall quarter, so I'm taking this week off from work and just finishing up some stuff for my research and chill-laxing at home before going into hard-core good student mode (AKA living under a rock).

Saturday, September 15, 2012

So one of the big trends that I'm obsessed with is embellishment on shiny textured material. As you can see from above, Dior, Lanvin, and Dolce & Gabbana, all utilized this trend to spicy up a solid shiny piece of clothing. Just imagine how these three looks would be like if they didn't have the pretty jewels and gold embellishments. In my opinion, I feel like these pieces would look very ordinary and plain. Therefore, adding a bit of "pazazz" in the form of sparkly jewels and shiny gold and silver gems really will take a good textured piece into an amazing textured piece!

Here I took my plain black shiny bow shirt and added some studded embellishments and a cute silver button in the center of the bow. See how much "pazazz" the studs and button added to this top? This is a great way to spice up a plain shirt and be on trend for the fall season! Hope you enjoy my first DIY project and get some ideas and inspiration to transform your own pieces into fashionable runway inspired looks :)

Tip: Instead of buying a pack of studs, you can go to a thrift store or yard sale and hope to find a studded belt and then just remove the studs at home with a butter knife. That is what I did to get my studs. Also for buttons, you can always find some cool unique ones on clothes at the thrift store and then salvage the fabric for another project :)

Tip: Try to look for cute details like this bow or like the pearl buttons on the cuffs of this shirt. If you can't find any cute details, don't worry. You can always add them yourself! You can make a bow and add it to the center of your shirt like the top I have. (DIY: Bow) Or you can take a hot glue gun and glue some fake pearls on the cuffs or anywhere else as decoration.

Tip: If you're going for a more complex design (so anything other than a straight line down the center) make sure you keep it symmetrical! One way to make something look more complex is to take a simple spaced out design and start filling in the gaps like I have done with the bottom cluster design.

*If you have a smart phone, use it to take a quick picture of your design so you can reference it while you're embellishing your top. (Chances are if you're not doing a simple line design, you might not remember what your creation looked like.) If you don't have a smart phone use a camera. And if you don't have either of those, go with the old fashion paper and pencil :)

For the studs, I had to first take my scissor and bend the two prongs upward because mine are from a studded belt which means they already have a bent form to them. The studs that you buy in a pack will be straight so you won't have to do this.

After you unfold them they should look somewhat straight like this.

Now you just puncture through the fabric on where you want the stud to go.

Make sure the prong goes through all the way.

Now take your scissors and use them to bend the prongs downwards till they are flat against the fabric.

Do this to both sides to secure the stud in place.

To sew on the button, start by making a knot at the end of the thread once it has been threaded through the needle.

Start from the back of the bow and poke the needle through the fabric.

Now pull the thread all the way through till you're stopped by the knot.

Thread through the button and secure the button on the desired spot.

Poke the needle through where you secured the knot this time from front to back.

Repeat step two and pull the thread all the way through, avoiding the hole from the button at first and then string the needle through the button afterwards. Repeat at least three times and end with the needle at the back of the bow, make a final knot and you're done!

Hope this was helpful and please send me a picture of your creation if you decide to do this DIY!

Friday, September 14, 2012

So my mom is in the process of renovating our front and backyard so yesterday we went to a place called Armstrong Garden Center to look at some potential yard plants. This place was amazing! They had a wide selection of plants, ground cover, trees, flowers, literally everything you will need to beautify a yard. It was also the perfect place to test out my new Canon EOS Rebel T3i!!! Yes I finally got it and I'm obsessed. So far I've already taken over 400 pictures with this which is crazy but good thing I got the 32 GB memory card so I don't have to worry about taking to many :) I can't wait to take more, especially when November comes and the leaves start changing colors.

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

So lately I've been busy stalking the runway reports from Style.com of Fall Fashion 2012. I actually haven't been to this site in quite a long time, but recently I've been curious about what was in this season. This year, the collections showed trends such as leather, fur, and ombre in a new light by enhancing and giving a new perspective on past fall styles.

Leather for example, commonly related to the material that gives moto jacket's their edge, were seen on lady-like silhouettes such as blouses and wide leg trouser pants(i.e.Derek Lam)

Fur on the other hand, expanded on their versatility and appeared on not only coats, but also sleeve cuffs, collar lapels, and even fur scarves(i.e. Bands of Outsiders).

Ombre a popular trend best known as a hair trend transcended its origins and turned into a summer staple look on just about anything (clothes, purses, hair, you get it right?) And now ombre is back for the fall and seen on sweaters, coats, and jackets, yay! (i.e. Rag & Bone, Alice+Olivia)

Here are my six favorite collections from Fall Fashion 2012:

In CR's collection, I loved the looks featuring mixed textured pieces such as the second outfit from the left. In this look, Ronson mixes fur with a structured camel jacket and kept the bottom flowy with a sheer pleated skirt. In her collection, Ronson makes contrasting materials and prints as the focal point of her fall 2012 collection.

Suggestions to achieve this look:

Throw a fur vest over a solid colored sweater or a solid structured jacket.

Match your tights with your shoes to make your legs look longer.

Instead of wearing the classic black tights, try a wine colored one or a white colored one.

Color palette: beige, white, wine, sunny yellow

Rebecca Minkoff is most notably known as a purse/bag designer. However, this collection shows an extension of her talent in fashion designing and validates her talent in this industry. From her Fall 2012 collection, Minkoff showed bright colored pieces from pants to shoes mixed with classic fall jackets with textured accents on the lapels and sleeves.

Suggestions to achieve this look:

Pair printed shirt dress with a faux leather vest all over some shiny tights.

Pair black jeans with a mustard button up with a plaid jacket.

Play with proportions by pairing cropped jackets or vests over a dress or peplum top.

Color palette: black, mustard yellow, red, blue, teal blue

Betsey Johnson is one of my favorite designers, so this was one of the first collections I viewed as a loyal fan. This season, Johnson featured brights like pink and orange, along with black and white prints featuring a pop of crimson red. Classic prints like plaid and houndstooth were also seen on pants, dresses, and dress coats.

Suggestions to achieve this look:

Pair houndstooth printed apparel with a pop of crimson red on your feet or add a deep red blazer over houndstooth printed pants with a creme blouse underneath.

Pair a houndstooth coat with pink tights and black riding boots.

Wear a black turtleneck as a base under a bright patterned dress, and layer over a coordinating faux fur vest.

Color palette: Bright pink, black and white, deep red, orange.

Bands of Outsiders took on a western feel in their fall collection with fur coats and scarves, along with camel and grey black colored accents over creme and bright solid pieces. They also featured the reverse-ombre trend in their gradient plaid prints fading from a light to a solid printed plaid pattern.

Suggestions to achieve this look:

Pair a beige or tan colored blazer over a creme blouse with a light creme printed pant on the bottom.

Wear a bold colored pattern maxi dress with a contrasting bright blazer up top and a black fur scarf to finish the look.

Wear a creme sweater over a navy printed trouser with a tan faux fur vest on top.

Color palette: beige/tan, black, navy, creme, grey, orange

This collection by Rag & Bone featured a tougher look with structured jackets and blazers over flowy feminine bottoms featuring printed and sheer pants. Bronze colored jackets and pants were also a staple along side bold stripe prints and ombre grey coats and leggings. Everything was then pulled together with a classic brown thick-waisted belt.

Suggestions to achieve this look:

Try a black and white printed button up, with grey trouser pants, and a black faux fur vest over top. Don't forget to cinch it in with a brown belt!

Wear a black long sleeve body con dress over maroon leggings with a striped blazer on top with a black faux fur vest over the blazer.

And finally, fashion is just not complete without a little Chanel. This fall, the collection gave off a very futuristic/alien-like feel, with structured silhouettes of grey and metallic, along side some more softer, colorful pieces of knitted sweaters and cardigans. A common ground was found in the lady-like appeal of both contrasting forms of apparel which was a constant trend in general this year of fall fashion.

Suggestions to achieve this look:

Pair a metallic grey sweater with a dark tweed pant and a lighter colored sequin coat or jacket on top.

Pair dark sage green pants/ jeans with a purple and grey geometric sweater and top it off with a floral chiffon scarf.

These are some of my favorite collections among so many more, however, obviously it would take weeks for me to mention them all. It was hard enough narrowing these down, not to mention four screenshots of looks within the collections. Feel free to stop by style.com for more reports on fall fashion 2012 :) * Warning: it's very addicting!

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Hey so today was another mundane Tuesday at work on campus. I'm so tired of going to work and having to keep up with my little side project and I just want to enjoy what's left of my summer...sigh...on another note, I drove by myself for the first time over the weekend. I recently just got my drivers license which I know is really sad because I'm 22 and I just barely started driving. But nonetheless a HUGE accomplishment for me, especially driving by myself and on the freeway :O So I went to Goodwill twice this weekend and scored some really cool pieces for the fall time which I'm super excited about. Also I went to Jo-Ann's and got some faux fur material for some DIY projects I want to do very soon (keep an eye out for those!) On top of that I've been obsessing over fall fashion runway collections on style.com this whole weekend like nobody's business. I was surprised to see the upcoming trends featured in several collections this season and can't wait to see how those styles translate into ready to wear at local clothing stores!

Thursday, September 6, 2012

So today I decided to feature my navy floral vest that I took from my mom's closet a while ago. I love the print on this light weight material and it's perfect to throw over any kind of basic solid colored top. If you can't tell I am obsessed with floral print. I just think floral print is so aesthetically pleasing to the eyes and it's a simple design that adds an effortless girly touch to any outfit. <3

On another note, I'm planning on purchasing a DSLR sometime this month and hopefully a tripod and remote so I can take better outfit photos and photos in general. The camera I have now is a Sony CyberShot which I've had since high school. It's still a pretty good camera, but I'm definitely ready to retire this piece of the past for something more fancy ;)

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Today is a gloomy day, even though my iphone tells me it's going to be 99 sometime in the next couple of hours...go figure. Because it's a bit chilly, so I decided to throw on this salmon colored knit top I got a while ago. My mom actually picked it out for me and I was hesitant at first, but fell in love with the color and the feel of it after I tried it on. It's the perfect little quarter sleeve sweater to wear over any dress. Just enough warmth for 79 degree weather :)

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Today was back to work for me after a relaxing weekend. I guess it's still pretty relaxing because I just have work right now and this research stuff I'm doing as a side project for a professor at school. Other then that,I'm pretty much soaking up (like a Sham Wow...hence the color of the dress -_-) these last couple of weeks of freedom before school starts. This summer kind of flew by and the majority of my freedom was ripped out of my arms by summer session one and two which was just annoying but I guess I did learn a lot. Yes I go to school and I learn stuff :O

Here is a recap of interesting stuff I learned from my summer session classes:

1. Chinese 20B: So I guess in China, Chinese people actually give themselves English names even though they will never go anywhere in which they have to use them. And the names they give themselves either are objects or they just don't make sense. One guy said he was named "Frog" and when he was asked why he replied "Oh I like the sound of it" -_- Watch it here!

2. History 20: Something interesting I learned was that during the time of the alcohol ban in Russian, people would drink perfume because it contained a small amount of alcohol and because alcohol was rare to find or extremely expensive to purchase, people would resort to drinking perfume.

3. Philosophy 02: Some physicians nowadays are really corrupt. We learned about different standards in which doctors disclose information and one of them was called "Professional Practice Standard" where doctors just tell their patients what other doctors are telling their patients. So if there is a bad side effect that doctors don't tell their patient, then the majority of physicians out there will do the same. :/ Eat them apples a day folks!